Posts

Who Should Go To Law School Today?

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Who Should Go to Law School Today? At the MAPLA conference in late October, which I have covered in several postings , Washington University School of Law Dean Kent Syverud described three things: Who should go to law school today; Who should not go to law school today; and Which school a student should pick.  Who Should go to Law School Today? You should still go to law school, despite the debt-to-annual income ratio , if you: Care passionately about obtaining the skills needed to change the world; Will make sacrifices to earn the J.D. degree; Will be astute at figuring out how to get an affordable education; Will be flexible and adaptable to the changing career landscape; and,  Will be adaptable to obtaining new skills as that landscape changes. Who Should not Go to Law School Today? Dean Syverud also advised that you should not go to law school if: You don't know what else to do; It only helps college or university care

Graduate School Bubbles Bursting Across all Professions?

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Graduate School Bubbles Bursting Across all Professions? One of my colleagues forwarded this story  appearing in The New England Journal of Medicine .  The story provides an answer to the following question: "Are we in a medical education bubble market?" The authors answer that question in the last paragraph of the story and suggest a difficult future for other professional schools. Although it seems unlikely that we're in a bubble market for medical education, we may already be in one for veterinary medicine. That bubble will burst when potential students recognize that the costs of training aren't matched by later returns. Then the optometry bubble may burst, followed by the pharmacy and dentistry bubbles. At the extreme, we will march down the debt-to-income-ratio ladder, through psychiatrists to cardiologists to orthopedists . . . until no one is left but the MBAs. It explains: In medicine, students buy their education from medical schools an

10,000 Page Views for The Red Velvet Lawyer

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10,000  Page Views Friends, family, and colleagues: Another milestone reached! Some time this morning -- while I was creating my latest profile of a distinguished ASL alumnus now serving the public interest -- you pushed to over 10,000 my total page views for the blog I launched in March. I truly appreciate your interest in this aspect of my "voice."  I enjoy communicating with you, and I want to serve your needs. Let me know what else I can do to make your student or law practice lives easier or more informed.   Feel free to send me suggested topics. Love you!

Distinguished Alumni: Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald Arrington

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Distinguished Alumni of the  Appalachian School of Law:   Commonwealth's Attorney  Gerald Arrington Gerald D. Arrington serves as the Commonwealth’s Attorney for Buchanan County, Virginia. As Commonwealth’s Attorney, he is the county’s top prosecutor and prosecutes its most important and highest profile cases, including murder, robberies, multi-count drug indictments, and crimes against children. Gerald grew up and lives in the small community of Breaks, Virginia, near The Breaks Interstate Park , about 35 minutes from the law school campus. He lives with his wife and two sons. He graduated from the University of Virginia’s College at Wise in 2001, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Government. During his college career, he worked two jobs to help pay for his education and served as a co-captain for the college’s mock trial team. In 2004, he graduated magna cum laude from the Appalachian School of Law in Grundy, Virginia.

MAPLA Conference: LSAC Applicant/Applications Data by Geographic Region

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LSAC Applicant/Applications Data by Geographic Region --Fall 2012 to Fall 2013 -- As I mentioned in my last posting, Joan Van Tol, General Counsel for the Law School Admission Council (LSAC), gave a presentation at the conference of the Midwest Association of Pre-law Advisors (MAPLA) about trends in law school applications.  I described the LSAC data on the historic cycles in applications here . I discussed the conference generally here . Today, I'll describe the LSAC data presented on two maps of the U.S. divided into ten regions: Where are ABA Law School Applicants Coming From?  YTD Change Fall 2012 to Fall 2013; and, Where are ABA Law School Applications Going To?  Percent Change Fall 2012 to Fall 2013. LSAC Geographic Regions for Reporting: The ten LSAC regions are: New England (Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island); Northeast (New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania); Midsouth (Maryland,

MAPLA Conference: LSAC Admissions Data -- 1968 to 2013

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LSAC Data on Trends in  LSAT Tests Administered,  ABA Applicants, and  First-Year Law School Matriculants  -- 1968 to 2013 --  At the conference of the Midwest Association of Pre-Law Advisors (MAPLA), which I first discussed  here , LSAC General Counsel, Joan Van Tol, presented new data on applications to law school through August 2013. I emailed her this morning asking her to provide a link to her slides, if possible.  She advises that they have not been posted, but should eventually appear on the PLANC website. I plan to continue to blog on the extremely helpful data provided at this conference by several speakers. Van Tol began with a slide showing a graph with three trend lines for the period of 1968 through the admissions year 2012-2013: for LSAT tests administered;  for ABA applicants; and  for first-year law students.    Most strikingly, the graph shows that legal education has seen three large cycles in the volume of LSATs administered and ABA app

Distinguished Alumni: Katie Mooney, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney

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Distinguished Alumni of the Appalachian School of Law:  Kathryn "Katie" Emily Mooney,  Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Kathryn "Katie" Emily Mooney began working as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney in the Tazewell County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office immediately after graduating from law school. As an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney, Katie carries a large caseload of a variety of criminal matters. She serves as co-lead counsel over prosecutions in Tazewell County General District Court; Tazewell County Circuit Court, and the Tazewell County Juvenile & Domestic Relations Court. Katie also serves as a TRIAD representative for the Tazewell County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office. As a TRIAD member she facilitates the cooperation between law enforcement agencies, hospitals, senior citizens, senior organizations and the community with the goal of reducing crimes against vulnerable senior citizens.  Along with her c